Cousins Visit The Nickel and Dime

Fall is a great time to visit Northern New Mexico because the air is fresher, it still rains, but not as much, and the leaves are turning colors, especially the aspens at the higher elevations. The altitude at The Nickel and Dime is a little too low for aspens, but as we drove north toward Taos, the aspen leaves shimmered like gold against the green pines. Wouldn't these colors make a gorgeous quilt?

Last week was fun because Tom's Wisconsin cousins, Donna, Richard and Tanya, came for a visit.

At Taos, we saw assorted folk wandering about in interesting outfits and made a visit to Taos Pueblo where people have lived for at least 1000 years. The pueblo is  the oldest continuously inhabited community in the United States, according to their website. Donna, Tanya and I explored the pueblo's shops and galleries while Tom and Richard sat by the incredibly clear river and eavesdropped on the extremely knowledgeable tour guide.

The ladies and I also made a short visit to Las Vegas and its plaza.

Santa Fe's Plaza was the place for some power shopping while the guys chilled on some benches listening to electronic harp music while watching a tweaker make balloon animals. That's why Santa Fe is called The City Different.

At home we ate too much, laughed a lot, and talked about family history.

Here are Tanya and Richard, ready for our Santa Fe visit.

Miss Bonnie came from her royal room upstairs to say hello to the guests. Richard even had a lap cat for awhile.

The guys got in a little hunting, but be assured that no animals were harmed. There was more sitting and looking at the view than anything else.

It was a golden time, visiting with the family, and the house feels empty without them.

Johnny Depp, John Dillinger and the Little Bohemia Lodge

I don't think Tom will ever recover from being a history teacher. After our trip through the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, we made a beeline for the Little Bohemia Lodge, near Manitowish Waters, in northern Wisconsin. 

   
The reason, of course, is historical:  Little Bohemia is where the famous shootout between the Dillinger gang and FBI agents occurred as depicted in the recent film Public Enemies, with Johnny Depp (woot!) as bank robber John Dillinger. 

Oh, yeah, buddy!

Actually, the Lodge was pretty interesting. We settled in for lunch and after we ordered, Tom wandered around, taking pictures. The hostess was gracious enough to show him the room where the FBI shot through the windows, thinking Dillinger was inside. The FBI didn't consider whether anybody else might have been there, but just blasted away. The original glass with bullet holes is still there, covered by other windows to preserve it.  (Click any photos for a closer look.)

   
Tom followed the trajectory of the bullets and found they had penetrated a wall across the room, and then into the wall of the next room!

 

 The shootout was a public relations disaster for the FBI. One agent was killed as well as one innocent bystander. Two bar room patrons were wounded in their Chevy coupe as they left the Lodge parking lot. The headlines screamed, "Ineptitude!"

  
Dillinger and the gang escaped; witnesses are still mounted in the main hall. 

  
A glass case holds items the gang left after fleeing the scene, including Dillinger’s Ex-Lax. Maybe after taking the Ex-Lax he was “on the run” in more ways than one.

 Five years ago the former owner wanted to tear down the Lodge and build condominiums, according to the hostess/tour guide. Fortunately, the present owner had a cabin across the lake, and, thinking it a shame to have something so historical torn down, bought the lodge and re-opened it. Soon after, he was contacted by Universal Pictures asking to film on location! Despite the addition of a deck, the lodge is almost exactly like it was in the 1934 shootout, including the tables and chairs, so we were told.

 
While Tom took pictures, two diners asked him what he was “shooting,” (get it?), so he launched into a historical explanation. The couple was unaware of what had happened, and they hadn’t seen the movie Public Enemies. Tom took them to the bullet holes on the wall and explained what the hostess had said. 

While Tom (in history teacher mode) gave his lecture to the captive couple, I enjoyed the posters in the entry area.    

I like history, too, you know, especially if Johnny Depp is involved.

Wisconsin Farm Edition

Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach some of us more than we can ever learn from books.--John Lubbock

 When you are feeling stressed, just look at this photo and breathe.